DELUGE OF TERROR, DISASTER IMAGES DISTRESSING FOR KIDS.

Byline: Susan Abram Staff Writer

PACOIMA - Instead of the typical worries about homework and dating, Emerson Mencia is starting to hear concerns about natural disasters and terrorist attacks among the teen groups he leads.

``Kids are definitely aware of it,'' said Mencia, who leads Youthtopia, a teen discussion group coordinated through the Northeast Valley Health Corp.

``Some of the youth that I work with belong to religious families and go to a certain type of church that associates natural disasters with the end of days,'' Mencia said. ``I see it and I hear it in their voices. They are in need of some comforting.''

Mental health experts nationwide see and hear the trends, too. And many say children and teens base their response to natural disasters on the reactions of their parents, as well as to the frequently and devastating images shown on television.

``There has definitely been research that confirms that extensive exposure to these images can be distressing for kids,'' said Dr. Melissa Brymer, manager of the terrorism and disaster branch at the National Center for Child Traumic Stress Network, based at the University of California, Los Angeles. The network helps to compile resources and information to parents, teachers and caregivers on how best to help displaced children and families.

``Younger kids are more likely to be fearful afterward, and we found that even very young kids kept thinking that one image shown many times was multiple events,'' Brymer said. ``With the hurricanes, they are thinking the storm is happening over and over again.''

Children who feel trauma are more likely to have nightmares, stomachaches and anxiety, mental health experts say.

Besides limiting the exposure to television, parents can also use these times to emphasis family preparedness, Brymer said. Having a plan helps children see their family is prepared to protect them.

In California, where earthquakes are a reality, watching disasters repeatedly does prove frightening for local children.

Dr. Marleen Wong, director of crisis counseling for the Los Angeles Unified School District, said she was concerned about children in homes where the television is always on.

``These images are particularly traumatizing to younger children, because it's a particularly historical event,'' Wong said. ``We've never had a disaster that has impacted so much of our country.

``It's not just a hurricane. It was followed by flooding, followed by unrest, followed by mass evacuation, and then conditions of the Superdome.''

And the way parents interpret those images has a lot to do with children experiencing stress or trauma, mental health experts say.

``When parents say 'Oh the world is ending,' they are overreacting and the children hear that and that's the message they get,'' said Pia Escudero, a psychiatric expert with LAUSD. ``The role of the parents is to discern those messages.''

Experts also say, however, that in times of disasters and upheaval, parents can emphasize the positive. Images of communities uniting to make donations and help victims proves comforting to children, Escudero said. It also encourages them to take action, making them feel good about themselves.

Susan Abram, [phone]

susan.abram(at)dailynews.com